With geeky the new hip, Mattel, Marvel see promise

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — With geeks and their lifestyles emerging as the new totems of coolness, marketers from a wide swath of companies are jumping on the trend for marketing opportunities, and there is perhaps no better target audience than the attendees at New York Comic Con.

The annual gathering of the comic-book aficionados and cognoscenti, which runs through the weekend, will have Mattel Inc.
MAT, +0.88%
Walt Disney Co.’s
DIS, -1.16%
Marvel Entertainment, Nintendo Co.
7974, -1.86%
Barnes & Noble Co.
BKS, +0.17%
Scholastic Corp.
SCHL, -0.15%
and even General Motors Co.
GM, -0.48%
vying for the attention of about 115,000 fans, many of whom will be appropriately dressed for the occasion.

Geek Chic Sends Major Brands to NY Comic Con

(2:37)

The die-hard fans dressed as Captain America or Spider-Man are getting the attention of marketers from Mattel Inc. to Walt Disney Co.’s Marvel Entertainment at New York Comic Con as geeky things become the new cool. MarketWatch's Andria Cheng reports.

The people drawn to New York Comic Con because of their fascination for Avengers, Spider-Man characters, and countless other creations “are people who are setting trends,” said Dan Buckley, president and publisher of print, digital and TV at Marvel, in an interview. “They are the early adopters of technology. These are the people who start things and make them hot.”

Getting the attention of trendsetters is crucial for these companies particularly in today’s digital world, where a tweet or a Facebook post can generate broad levels of interest. Companies are seeking to build loyalty with consumers who have myriad choices and have changed the way they purchase and spend their leisure time with smartphones and other mobile devices, analysts said.

“The demographic that goes to New York Comic Con, (mostly) males 18 to 34, they are very eager and have a good amount of buying power,” said MKM Partners analyst Eric Handler, who rates both Mattel and Hasbro a neutral and “Call of Duty” videogame maker Activision Blizzard Inc.
ATVI, -1.28%
a buy. “The toy industry has been weak. Hasbro had two disappointing holiday seasons. Mattel has been executing quite well. I don’t expect [the event] to have any significant impact on stocks. But it can build mind share with consumers. You want to raise awareness.”

New York Comic Con, which started in 2006, has seen the number of its attendees grow more than four times from 25,000 and now only trails San Diego’s Comic Con International in size. Exhibitors at the New York event also grew from 200 in 2006 to 1,200 this year, with sales on the floor space at New York’s Javits Center expected to be $15 million this year, according to Lance Fensterman, who manages the show.

“The event is like a geek prom,” he said. “Geeks have come out of the basement. It’s mainstream. Retailers and manufacturers can see what the fan base is buzzing about. It’s used as a platform to launch products and projects. It’s like a massive 115,000-people focus group.”

Lego Enterprises Inc., for instance, is showing at the event for the first time, promoting new toys in the pipeline such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle building sets.

Hasbro, which decided not to have a booth on the floor this year, is hosting panels among about 500 that are being offered at the event, where fans get to see authors, cast members and brand creators. Hasbro opted on Wednesday night to host a preview party for writers and bloggers from more than 100 outlets and unveiled its new Angry Birds Star Wars game toys for this holiday season. It also previewed its new Iron Man III-licensed action figures for next year.

New York Comic Con is an “important stage to show off our initiatives,” said Jeff Labovitz, Hasbro’s director of global marketing for Star Wars. With Angry Birds Star Wars, Hasbro is hoping the combination of the two brands can help it reach both “a new generation of kids and their dads.”

Mattel, which is exhibiting new action-figure collector items and is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its He-Man and the Masters of the Universe line, also is hoping shows like these could help attract multiple generations.

“It’s a way to bring nostalgic brands back that are core to Mattel for a new audience,” said Scott Neitlich, a marketing manager at Mattel. “It’s a new in: retro, geeky toys. [The show] gives us a chance to talk one on one with them.”

Mattel doesn’t break out the size of its collector business, but Needham & Co. analyst Sean McGowan said those are items that tend to be more profitable for toy makers because they are higher priced. To engage with adult shoppers, Mattel in 2008 created Mattycollector.com to interact with fans directly, Neitlich added.

Andria Cheng/MarketWatch

New York Comic Con

At Marvel, one of its key introductions includes Marvel Now, a relaunch of several of its classic titles using different writers and artists.

“These are people who live and breathe our products,” said Buckley. “Having a chance to get their feedback and telling us whether we are doing right or wrong on a qualitative basis is fantastic. It’s not important just for Marvel, but it’s also important for our licensees, our broadcast companies and game companies.”

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